Joseph Hennager and his wife, Julia are the proud owners of the Iowa City Reading Tree. They have lived in Iowa City for over 40 years and currently reside in a tall, gray house with a screened-in porch overflowing with books.
Hennager built the Iowa City Reading Tree, located at 312 Ronald St., almost six years ago and has always had a passion for reading. He built the lending library inside an old 87 foot tree in his front yard that was leaning dangerously toward his neighbor’s house after the derecho tore through Iowa in August 2020, with hopes of providing young readers with a place to spend time reading books.
“We both have teaching degrees, so we understand the value of early reading, and I think we always read quite a bit,” Hennager said of him and his wife.
The Reading Tree is covered in wooden panels and intricate animal carvings. Hennager said the entire process took him around a year and a half, and that the project grew from a simple way to pass time during the COVID-19 pandemic to something with personal value. The animal carvings, in particular, carry significant meaning for him and the neighborhood.
“The eagle that’s over there is because of an eagle that lived in the tree, and this dog is because I had a black lab live for 20 years, so he’s still around here. Every animal that I have some connection to is here,” he said.
Hennager opened one of the multiple doors on a tall tree next to their house, displaying a collection of dog treats and a large, leather book, filled with messages from children around the world. From the book, Hennager read one of the messages out loud.
“I love that the people in Iowa City put hard work into making the world a better place,” he said.
The Iowa City Reading Tree resides on a platform decorated with colorful strips of cloth and a chalkboard sign displaying positive messages.
The tree has a Ring Doorbell which children can ring and talk to “The Elf,” Hennager said. When a kid rings the doorbell, he will speak to them through it.
The tree has three different sections of books: Littles, Middles, and Bigs. Hennager said he created the sections for all ages so that everyone can enjoy the wonder of reading. Notably, the “Littles” section is the least full, which highlights the need for children’s book donations, Hennager said.
Hennager called his next-door neighbor and close friend, Robert Moninger, to talk about the tree, which is more in Moninger’s yard than his. Moninger expressed a great fondness for the tree and the community that it creates.
“Some people come up and sit there on the railing and never open, never read anything,” Moninger said. “They never do anything but sit up there, kind of meditate.”
Moninger can see the Reading Tree from his living room window and said he can see everything going on out there. He spoke about how even if people don’t take or read any books, just being at the Reading Tree can be enjoyable.
Despite it being built years ago, Hennager said the tree will never be done and that he still has many aspirations for it. Another one of these plans includes installing an old phone booth next to the tree.
He hopes that people will use the “phone booth to nowhere” to speak to whoever they want, whether that is people who have passed or someone they just miss.
“I just want it to be a place where people can come and read, sit, meditate. It kind of has a little spirit to it, mysterious and funky,” Hennager said.
Hennager said they have plenty of books for adults, but not for kids, mentioning that most people have books in their houses, either from when they were children or from their children. He believes providing children with books is important.
“All those books clutter up some place. They’re in a box some place in your house, and you just kind of figure, you can either hold them for your kids, or you can recycle them for other kids and pass the words on,” Hennager said.
Miriam Khaetov, Spanish bilingual library assistant at the Iowa City Public Library, said reading is crucial for childhood development.
“I think reading to kids is really important because it helps them in so many ways, like they can learn about new cultures,” Khaetov said.
She also expressed how important it is for children to hear stories from other cultures and in other languages so that they can begin to discover the world.
Hennager emphasized the importance of the tree in helping to provide an inclusive space for children and adults alike.
“I just want more and more people to come and get books and read as much as possible, that’s the plan,” Hennager said.